In Russia, women’s life expectancy is 10 years longer than men’s, possibly due to men’s lower awareness of risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases and certain behavioral stereotypes.

OBJECTIVE

To study and compare gender differences in awareness and attitude towards a healthy lifestyle among users of medical Internet resources.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Users of medical Internet resources were surveyed using the ProZOZH-II questionnaire on commitment to a healthy lifestyle and an adapted questionnaire to assess the adverse impact of risk factors on health. Statistical processing was performed using MS Excel 2021 and Jamovi software.

RESULTS

The study included 470 subjects, 98 (20.9%) males and 372 (79.1%) females; the groups were comparable in basic socio-demographic characteristics. Females tend to evaluate the following factors as having a more pronounced impact on their health: smoking, unhealthy diet, low physical activity, hypertension, high cholesterol, and sugar levels; males consider alcohol consumption a more significant adverse factor. No gender differences were identified in assessing the impact of stress/anxiety/depression. The results of the ProZOZH-II questionnaire showed the difference in commitment to healthy lifestyles between males and females only on the Responsibility for Health subscale; there were no gender differences in other parameters (Physical Activity, Nutrition, Self-enrichment, Interpersonal Relationships, Stress Management).

CONCLUSIONS

Users of medical Internet resources are well aware of the risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases and have a good commitment to a healthy lifestyle. The data obtained can be used in the development of individual prevention programs focused on the alcohol impact on men’s health and smoking, unhealthy diet, low physical activity, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and hyperglycemia impact on women’s health.